Machine for capping bottles.



No. 883,127. PATENTED MAR. 24, 1908.

S. G. BOND.. MACHINE FOR CAPPING BOTTLES.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 20, 1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

I V I WITNESSES? abr C e ilivsl ron Q/w i No. 883,127. PATENTED MAR. 24, 1908.

S. O. BOND.

MACHINE FOR CAPPING BOTTLES.

APPLICATION TILED AUG. 20, 1906.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2..

Attys provement's the SAMUEL 0.

BOND, OF WIIMINGTON, DELAWARE, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO

BOND SEALING COMPANY,'A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

MACHINE FOR CAPPING BOTTLES.

I at. 883,127.

Specification 0! Letters Patent.

Patented March 24, 1908.

Appfiedfilin filed Augult 20, 19. Serial No. 331,806.

T0011 whom itqna'y concern:

Be it known that I,- SAMUEL C, Bonn, residing at Wilmington, in the county of Newcastle and State of Delaware, a citizen of the United States, have invented or discovered certain new and useful .Improvements in Machines for Ca ing Bottles, of which imfii owing is a'specification.

The invention relates to that class of bottle-capping mechanism which is employed for first compresing upon and in sealmg contact with a bottle-mouth a medium .contained within a metallic cap provided with a dependent flange or fingers, and then constrict ngthe flangeof the cap into 4 locking engagement with a bead or shoulder on the exterior ofthe bottle-mouth; and it consists in certain improvements in such mechanism by means of which the operation can be efliciently and economically performed.

'In the accompanying drawings there is illustrated a securing invention in its referred form.

Figures 1 an 2 are sectional elevations of the head, the partsin position at the beginning and the end of the operation of a cap on a bottle. F' 3 is a. horizontal section on thelindIII- II ofFi'g. 1 Figs. 4 and 5 are views similar to.Fig. 1 illustrating modifications of my improvement, Fig. '6 is a horizontal section on a plane indicated by "the'line VII 'VII Fig. 4; Fig. 7 is'a plan viewof the securing ring shown in Figs. 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6. l The bottle may be held or supported in proper position relative to the head by any suitable means, and the head is believed to to the bottle, or

be ada ted for use with any suitable mechanism or bringi it into operative relation lire bottle into similar relation to the head. A great variety of mechanism suitable for that is well known to those skilled in t e art, and need nogbp-illpstratedl. dr h f eerrmgtot e awings,t ecasing l o the head is preferably cylindrical in form as shown, and is provided with a bottom wall 2.

' converging upwardly to form a bottom opening in the head of sli htly greater diameter than the mouths o the ottles to be opened. Such conical form of the bottom h ad embodyi g y 7 axial alinement of the bottle for the capping operation.

Within the casing is secured the sealingblock 3, preferabl as shown, by screwing an upper flange or co ar of said block within the up er portion of the inner wall of the casing. Belbw this fl e or collar the block is formed of a diameter preferably a very little greater than that of the bottom ope in the.casing, and in the annular space '1; us left between the block and the casing below their junction, is arranged the annular plunger 4. This plunger is connected preferably by means ofbolts 5, as shown, and which pass freely through openings through the I overhanging flange or collar of block 3, to an upper cross-head or plate 6,: fastened to or integral with the stem 7. A resilient cushion as spring 8 is interposed between the head and the adapted to hol the ring plunger in raised osltion as shown in Fig. 1 and having sufcient tension to exert the desired ressure on the cap during the sealing operatlon. It is preferred to arrange the spring in axial o in the block 3 and stem 7, as sl iown. The block 3 is of a length such that its lower face is slightly above a shelf 9 formed around-the inner edge of the bottom opening of the casing, and upon this shelf is supported an annular constricting tool 10. This tool is also preferably employed to support the cap, the flange of the cap, as shown in Fig. 1, being gripped by the tool. For that purpose the cap securing tool is resilient, in order to rmit the cap to be placed in late6, said. spring being I position, (eit er by hand or by any suitable mechanical means), and then to ho the cap with sufficient firmness. In order to receive the top of the cap when so supported, as well as for ,another 1) ose to be presently described, the bottom face of the block 3 is concave, as shown.

In the operation of capping the tool or part directly operative on the flange of the ca to cause it to engage the bead or rib on the ottle, is caused to move inwardly by a movement of the annular plunger independent of the head, and during such movement of the plunger the tension of the s ring 8- is increased, thereby causing the b ock 3 to exert. the desired pressure on thecap to compress the asking in the latter and seat it tightly on t e end of the bottle neck.

- suitab The form of securing-tool which it is preferred to employ is illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7, and consists of an annular coil of fine steel wire, which is stiff enough to exert the necessary constricting pressure upon the flange of the cap, but still has sufficient internal resilience to accommodate itself to the usual irregularities in the cross-sectional contours of the mouths of the bottles to be capped. The latter result has heretofore been attained, it is believed, only by the employment of resilient or resiliently su ported means for operating the securing-too whereas by making the tool itself internally resilient to the required degree, while at the same time preserving the rigidity necessary to the desired action of the tool on the flange.

of the cap, much more evenness and certainty of scaling is believed to be attained.

The spiral wire 10 referably loosely incloses a solid ring 11, su ciently smaller in cross sectional diameter to permit the necessary play of the wire 10, but the employment of the inner ring is not considered essential.

In 0 eration, the stem 7 is attachedto any 1% mechanism, varieties of which are well known to those skilled in the art, for imparting to the head a reciprocating movement with relation to the mouth of a bottle supported in axial alinement therewith. Or, as is equally well known, the bottle support and the bottle may be moved, and the head he held stationary by means of the stem 7.

The spring 8 is of strength suflicient to withi stand a pressure equal to that which is desired to be exerted in compressing the sealing-disk in the ca u on t e bottle-mouth, and normally holds the ring 4 firmly in its upper osition, as shown in Fig. 1, with its upper ace bearing against the lower face of the overhanging collar or flange of block 3. When the bottle-mouth to be sealed has entered the bottom opening of the casing and pressure to the stem 7 will, through plate 6 and bolts 5, cause the ring 4 to move down- Wardl within the casing and through means herea ter described, cause a-constriction of the tool 10 in contact with the flange around the latter. In the construction shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 the constriction or inward movement of the tool is elfected by a series of radially arranged fingers 12 having their inner ends shaped to the contour of the tool 10, while their outer ends are in engagement with the plunger 4. The outer ends of the fingers are rounded and roject into a groove 13 in the lower end of t e plunger 4. It is preferred that the outer ends of the fingers should have a yielding abutment in the groove as the split ring 14. The tool 10 is supported as stated by a shelf or ledge 9 in proper relation to the position of the bottle neck during the sealing operation and as the plunger 4 moves in the head the outer ends of the fingers, which normally form an acute angle with the axis of the head, are moved down thereby forcing the tool inward along the shelf, and causing it to act constrictively on the flange of the cap. This constrictive movement of the tool can be effected in other ways, as for example'in Figs. 4 and 6, the tool is acted on in opposite directions by straps 15, which have their ends connected These fingers have normally such an inclina- I tion that when the plunger is moved down,

the lower ends of the fingers will slide outward along the shelf 9 drawing the loops formed by the straps 15 towards each other thereby constricting the tool. It will be observed that the straps so embrace or surround the tool that each acts constrictively through an arc of more than one hundred and eighty degrees, the constrictive action of one loop or strap overlapping that of the other loo or strap. 1

t will be observed that the direction of action of the plunger on the tool is at an angle less than a right'angle to the axis of the tool, the-plunger acting as a wed c. This wedge-like action is produced in t e constructions shown in Figs. 1, 2, 4 and 6 by the interposition of inclined fin ers between the tool and the plunger. As s own in Fig. 5 the plunger may be constructed with an inclined beveled directly on the the latter.

I claim herein as my invention:

1. In a bottle capping machine the combination of a head having a cap bearing ortion or block, an annulartool having in ependently movable portions, a plunger movable relatively to the head for effecting a constricting movement of the tool, and a yielding cushion or s ring interposed between the plunger and tool 2. In a bottle capping machine an annular cap securing tool, consisting of portions the inner walls of which are capable of independent radial movement when acting on the cap.

3. In a bottle ca ping machine an annular cap securing too formed of wire bent to form a spiral.

4. In a bottle capping machine the combination of a head, an annular cap securing tool having its inner wall formed of portions radially movable independently of each ortion 18 which will act I other, and adapted to sup ort the cap in position to receive the end 0 the bottle neck.

5. In a bottle capping machine the combi' nation of a head, an annular cap securing tool consisting of ortions the inner walls of which are capab e of independent radial movement when acting on the cap, and means including a resilient member for forcing said portions into operative engagement with the cap.

6. In a bottle capping machine the combination of a head, an annular cap securing tool consisting of ortions, the inner walls of which are capab e of independent radial movement when acting on the cap and adapt- 15 SAMUEL C. BOND.

Witnesses: I

WILLIAM G. BOND, HENRY L. FALENWIDER. 

